The Ida Maria and Glasvegastour came through NYC on Saturday (MHOW, 3/28) and Monday (Webster Hall, 3/30). The two UK acts toured together from SXSW to Boston (3/31), and they will share a bill again at least one more time in April - at the Coachella Festival on the west coast. Hopefully (current BrooklynVegan.com obsession) Ida decides to stop by the east coast again while she's in the country (at the moment that is her only scheduled date)...

"...She's really rather fantastic. I love her album, Fortress Round My Heart, and her voice is even rawer and more frayed live, though she and her band are still tight and technically competent. I think she had a cold, but the cracks and friction in her chest only made her sound better [at Webster Hall], in my opinion.

She was done quickly, though I wouldn't be surprised if she had made it through her whole album, since it clocks in at a mere 31 minutes." [hornblower]

Hi, it's me again, nut who was in the front row last time Ida hit up Manhattan, and subsequently was in all the pictures. I was front row again, because she's that important to me. (Not center this time, unfortunately- three people off to the right.)

Was Ida Maria incredible? Absolutely. Of course. I actually did the exact same thing as 4:58- went for Ida, left during the fourth Glasvegas song (all four were the same, and their lights were going to give me seizures, despite the fact that I'm not epileptic)- and she was more than worth the $30. Alas, she wasn't as good as at Mercury Lounge a couple of months back, despite having much more awesome hair the first time out. The difference? At Mercury, she was the headliner- everyone was there for her- and she was a foot from the crowd, not on a stage behind a barrier. This time, the audience enthusiasm just wasn't there, and you could actively see it. Her facial expresses, her stage banter, her energy... all of it was really hurt by the fact that most of the audience didn't know who she was, and few people were excited for her appearance. It was a real shame, but if she's still that amazing being a (generally) unknown opener, the next time I see her when she's the headliner, the third go-round will be the best.

I thought the MHOW was better for both artists. I thought Ida was good, but something came across as a bit gimmicky (maybe it is the ridiculous overexposure). She does have a great voice though. To say that all of Glasvegas's songs sound alike (aside from sounding like a sheep) is asinine. They left something to be desired in their Bowery show, to say that they were not good this time (or at least improved) is just being dishonest. I guess the vast majority of the crowd singing along was really disappointed in them but just faking it.